4 Types of Car Buyers

Car buying can be a daunting task without a clear “how to” path. If you allow it, it can consume all of your free time, brain power and money. Once faced with this situation, most people fall into one of these types of buyers.

Price shoppers

Price shoppers want to walk away with the best price possible. Even if that includes calling 50 dealerships and trying to convince the salesman that even though X dealership’s car has the premium 7” infotainment screen, it doesn’t add any value to them since they don’t want one to begin with. This type of shopper probably also cares about the finance rates they can obtain. Sometimes they may even turn a blind eye to the final price and only care about who can get their monthly payments the lowest even if it includes a psychotic 8-year loan (why is this even a thing?).

Analytical shoppers

This person is typically an engineer type. They want to know every little detail of how the car works, exact engine numbers and may care about value for their money. They may not have a specific type of vehicle in mind, just a broad spectrum of numbers they are looking for. This task they set upon themselves of finding a new car dominates their life. If they are not working, they are researching. Most know car specs before going to a dealership but like to test salesmen to see if they know their own cars (guilty…and they normally don’t).

Emotional shoppers

Shopper: I like that red car. How much is it?
Salesman: Let me check…
Shopper: That is such a pretty car! I’ll take it.
Salesman: Cha-ching!

Apathetic buyer

This person doesn’t like to buy a car. They can sometimes be the opposite of the Analytical Shopper. They would rather go to the dentist than the dealership. If their sister-in-law tells them that she loves her 2012 Honda CR-V, they will probably buy a 2012 Honda CR-V. Their goal is to make the process easy, quick and get a pretty good deal. They lack the emotional connection to the machine they spend many hours a day in and often buy the wrong car for the job.

There is no correct type of buyer to be. Everyone’s needs are different but in the end, they all have the same goal. Whether you like to buy a car every two years or ten years, I would love to help guide you through the process to make sure you end the day with the right car in your garage.